Advert for the Crypto Cycle Company, bicycles for sale

Bicycles became popular slowly during the second half of the 19th century, but many people still considered them an undignified mode of transport. Women in particular found them difficult to ride, but this was as much a function of the long skirts fashionable in the day as the bicycle itself. Clergymen also found them inappropriate, as they could look unseemly when riding them.

Tricycles were much more stable and easier to control. They had an added benefit in that many of the popular models of the time could be ridden by two people, sitting sit by side, making cycling a form of sociable exercise.

This advert is for a bizarre tricycle called the 'Agilis', which featured a camera (or "photographic outfit") in its frame. The text describes it as ideal "for those Gentlemen who wish to combine Photography with Cycling."